Kat Von D is permanently attached to Jesse James ... at least the image of his childhood face. On an upcoming episode of her TLC show LA Ink, the 29-year-old tattoo artist shows Jesse her big and permanent surprise.

Von D tells James, "I'm really nervous about giving you your surprise!" Then after showing him and getting his approval, she ironically says:

"I thought you were going to tell me you were breaking up with me."

Guess that was coming later. Kat and Jesse had been engaged since January. Brings new meaning to the phrase ... think before you ink!